BENJAMIN NETANYAHU
President Trump, thank you for the truly warm hospitality. You and Melania have shown me, my wife Sara, our entire delegation. I deeply value your friendship. To me, to the state Israel, it was so clearly evident in the words you just spoke, Israel has no better ally than the United States. And I want to assure you, the United States has no better ally than Israel.
Our alliance has been remarkably strong, but under your leadership, I'm confident it will get even stronger. I look forward to working with you to dramatically upgrade our alliance in every field, in security and technology and cyber and trade and so many others, and I certainly welcome your forthright call to ensure that Israel is treated fairly in international forums and that the slander and boycotts of Israel are resisted mightily by the power and moral position of the United States of America.
As you have said, our lives are based on a deep bond of common values and common interest. And increasingly, those values and interests are under attack by one malevolent force, radical Islamic terror. Mr. President, you've shown great clarity and courage in confronting this challenge head on. You call for confronting Iran's terrorist regime, preventing Iran from realizing this terrible deal into a nuclear arsenal, and you have said that the United States is committed to preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons. You call for the defeat of ISIS.
Under your leadership, I believe we can reverse the rising tide of radical Islam, and in this great task, as in so many others, Israel stands with you and I stand with you. Mr. President, in rolling back militant Islam, we can seize an historic opportunity because for the first time in my lifetime and for the first time in the life of my country, Arab countries in the region do not see Israel as an enemy, but increasingly as an ally.
I believe that under your leadership, this change in our region creates an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen security and advance peace. Let us seize this moment together. Let us bolster security. Let us seek new avenues of peace and let us bring the remarkable alliance between Israel and the United States to even greater heights.
Thank you, thank you, Mr. President.
President Trump, thank you for the truly warm hospitality. You and Melania have shown me, my wife Sara, our entire delegation. I deeply value your friendship. To me, to the state Israel, it was so clearly evident in the words you just spoke, Israel has no better ally than the United States. And I want to assure you, the United States has no better ally than Israel.
Our alliance has been remarkably strong, but under your leadership, I'm confident it will get even stronger. I look forward to working with you to dramatically upgrade our alliance in every field, in security and technology and cyber and trade and so many others, and I certainly welcome your forthright call to ensure that Israel is treated fairly in international forums and that the slander and boycotts of Israel are resisted mightily by the power and moral position of the United States of America.
As you have said, our lives are based on a deep bond of common values and common interest. And increasingly, those values and interests are under attack by one malevolent force, radical Islamic terror. Mr. President, you've shown great clarity and courage in confronting this challenge head on. You call for confronting Iran's terrorist regime, preventing Iran from realizing this terrible deal into a nuclear arsenal, and you have said that the United States is committed to preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons. You call for the defeat of ISIS.
Under your leadership, I believe we can reverse the rising tide of radical Islam, and in this great task, as in so many others, Israel stands with you and I stand with you. Mr. President, in rolling back militant Islam, we can seize an historic opportunity because for the first time in my lifetime and for the first time in the life of my country, Arab countries in the region do not see Israel as an enemy, but increasingly as an ally.
I believe that under your leadership, this change in our region creates an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen security and advance peace. Let us seize this moment together. Let us bolster security. Let us seek new avenues of peace and let us bring the remarkable alliance between Israel and the United States to even greater heights.
Thank you, thank you, Mr. President.
[FONT="][h=4]BENJAMIN NETANYAHU[/h]
Thank you. I read yesterday that an American official said that if you ask five people what two states would look like, you'd get eight different answers. Mr. President, if you ask five Israelis, you'd get twelve different answers.
They have to stop calling for Israel's destruction, they have to stop educating their people for Israel's destruction. Second, in any peace agreement, Israel must retain the overriding security control over the entire area west of the Jordan River because if we don't, we know what will happen. Because otherwise, we'll get another radical Islamic terrorist state in the Palestinian areas exploding the peace, exploding the Middle East.
Now unfortunately, the Palestinians vehemently reject both prerequisites for peace. First they continue to call for Israel's destruction inside their schools, inside their mosques, inside the textbooks. You have to read it to believe it. They even — you know, they even deny, Mr. President, our historical connection to our homeland. And I suppose you have to ask yourself, why do — why are Jews called Jews?
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[/FONT]Thank you. I read yesterday that an American official said that if you ask five people what two states would look like, you'd get eight different answers. Mr. President, if you ask five Israelis, you'd get twelve different answers.
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But rather than deal with labels, I want to deal with substance. It's something I've hoped to do for years in a world that's absolutely fixated on labels and not on substance. So here's the substance. There are two prerequisites for peace that I laid out two -- several years ago and they haven't changed. First, the Palestinians must recognize the Jewish state.They have to stop calling for Israel's destruction, they have to stop educating their people for Israel's destruction. Second, in any peace agreement, Israel must retain the overriding security control over the entire area west of the Jordan River because if we don't, we know what will happen. Because otherwise, we'll get another radical Islamic terrorist state in the Palestinian areas exploding the peace, exploding the Middle East.
Now unfortunately, the Palestinians vehemently reject both prerequisites for peace. First they continue to call for Israel's destruction inside their schools, inside their mosques, inside the textbooks. You have to read it to believe it. They even — you know, they even deny, Mr. President, our historical connection to our homeland. And I suppose you have to ask yourself, why do — why are Jews called Jews?
[FONT="][h=4]BENJAMIN NETANYAHU[/h]
Well, the Chinese are called Chinese because they come from China. The Japanese are called Japanese because they come from Japan. Well, Jews are called Jews because they come from Judea. This is our ancestral homeland. Jews are not foreign colonialists in Judea.
So unfortunately, the Palestinians not only denied the past, they also poisoned the present. They named public squares in honor of mass murderers who murdered Israelis and I have to say, also murdered Americans. They -- fund -- they pay monthly salaries to the families of murderers, like the family of the terrorist who killed Taylor Force, a wonderful young American, a West Point graduate, who was stabbed to death while visiting Israel.
So this is the source of the conflict. The persistent Palestinian refusal to recognize a Jewish state in any boundary, this persistent rejectionism, that's the reason we don't have peace. Now that has to change, I want it to change. Not only have I not abandoned these two perquisites of peace, they've become even more important because of the rising tide of fanaticism that has swept the Middle East and is also unfortunately, infected Palestinian society.
So I want this to change. I want those two perquisites of peace, substance, not labels, I want them re-instated. But if anyone believes that I, as prime minister of Israel, responsible for the security of my country, would blindly walk into a Palestinian terrorist state that seeks the destruction of my country, they're gravely mistaken.
The two perquisites of peace, recognition of the Jewish state and Israel’s security needs, west of the Jordan, they remain pertinent. We have to look for new ways, new ideas, on how to re-instate and how to move peace forward. And I believe that the great opportunity for peace comes from a regional approach from involving our new found Arab partners in the pursuant of a broader peace and peace will the Palestinians.
And I greatly look forward to discussing this in detail with you Mr. President, because, I think that if we work together, we have a shot.
[FONT="][/FONT]
[/FONT]Well, the Chinese are called Chinese because they come from China. The Japanese are called Japanese because they come from Japan. Well, Jews are called Jews because they come from Judea. This is our ancestral homeland. Jews are not foreign colonialists in Judea.
So unfortunately, the Palestinians not only denied the past, they also poisoned the present. They named public squares in honor of mass murderers who murdered Israelis and I have to say, also murdered Americans. They -- fund -- they pay monthly salaries to the families of murderers, like the family of the terrorist who killed Taylor Force, a wonderful young American, a West Point graduate, who was stabbed to death while visiting Israel.
So this is the source of the conflict. The persistent Palestinian refusal to recognize a Jewish state in any boundary, this persistent rejectionism, that's the reason we don't have peace. Now that has to change, I want it to change. Not only have I not abandoned these two perquisites of peace, they've become even more important because of the rising tide of fanaticism that has swept the Middle East and is also unfortunately, infected Palestinian society.
So I want this to change. I want those two perquisites of peace, substance, not labels, I want them re-instated. But if anyone believes that I, as prime minister of Israel, responsible for the security of my country, would blindly walk into a Palestinian terrorist state that seeks the destruction of my country, they're gravely mistaken.
The two perquisites of peace, recognition of the Jewish state and Israel’s security needs, west of the Jordan, they remain pertinent. We have to look for new ways, new ideas, on how to re-instate and how to move peace forward. And I believe that the great opportunity for peace comes from a regional approach from involving our new found Arab partners in the pursuant of a broader peace and peace will the Palestinians.
And I greatly look forward to discussing this in detail with you Mr. President, because, I think that if we work together, we have a shot.
[FONT="][h=4]BENJAMIN NETANYAHU[/h]
You asked about Iran. One thing is preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons, something that President Trump and I, I think, are deeply committed to do. And we are obviously going to discuss that.
I think beyond that, President Trump has led a very important effort in the past few weeks, just coming into the presidency. He pointed out there are violations -- Iranian violations on ballistic missile tests. By the way, these ballistic missiles are inscribed in Hebrew, "Israel must be destroyed."
The Palestinian -- rather, the Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif said, "Our ballistic missiles are not intended against any country." No, they write on the missiles in Hebrew, "Israel must be destroyed."
So, challenging Iran on its violations of ballistic missiles; imposing sanctions on Hezbollah, preventing them, making them pay for the terrorism that they foment throughout the Middle East and beyond, well beyond, I think that's a change that is clearly evident in -- since President Trump took office.
I welcome that. I think it's -- let me say this very openly -- I think it's long overdue. And I think that if we work together, and not just the United States and Israel, but so many others in the region who see eye to eye on the -- on the great magnitude and danger of the Iranian threat. And I think -- I think we can roll back Iran's aggression and danger.
And that's something that is important for Israel and the Arab states. But I think it's vitally important for America. These guys are developing ICBMs. They're developing -- they want to get to a nuclear arsenal, not a bomb; 100 bombs. And they want to have the ability to launch them everywhere on earth, and including -- and especially, eventually the United States.
So this is something that is important for all of us. I welcome the change. And I intend to work with President Trump very closely so that we can thwart this danger.
[FONT="][/FONT]
[/FONT]You asked about Iran. One thing is preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons, something that President Trump and I, I think, are deeply committed to do. And we are obviously going to discuss that.
I think beyond that, President Trump has led a very important effort in the past few weeks, just coming into the presidency. He pointed out there are violations -- Iranian violations on ballistic missile tests. By the way, these ballistic missiles are inscribed in Hebrew, "Israel must be destroyed."
The Palestinian -- rather, the Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif said, "Our ballistic missiles are not intended against any country." No, they write on the missiles in Hebrew, "Israel must be destroyed."
So, challenging Iran on its violations of ballistic missiles; imposing sanctions on Hezbollah, preventing them, making them pay for the terrorism that they foment throughout the Middle East and beyond, well beyond, I think that's a change that is clearly evident in -- since President Trump took office.
I welcome that. I think it's -- let me say this very openly -- I think it's long overdue. And I think that if we work together, and not just the United States and Israel, but so many others in the region who see eye to eye on the -- on the great magnitude and danger of the Iranian threat. And I think -- I think we can roll back Iran's aggression and danger.
And that's something that is important for Israel and the Arab states. But I think it's vitally important for America. These guys are developing ICBMs. They're developing -- they want to get to a nuclear arsenal, not a bomb; 100 bombs. And they want to have the ability to launch them everywhere on earth, and including -- and especially, eventually the United States.
So this is something that is important for all of us. I welcome the change. And I intend to work with President Trump very closely so that we can thwart this danger.
[FONT="][h=4]BENJAMIN NETANYAHU[/h]
I believe that the issue of the settlements is not the core of the conflict, nor does it really drive the conflict. I think it's an issue that has to be resolved in the context of peace negotiations. And I think we'd also -- we also are gonna speak about it, President Trump and I, so we can arrive at an understanding so we don't keep on bumping into each other all the time on this issue and we're going to discuss this.
On the question you said -- you just came back with your question to the problem that I said. It's the label. What does (inaudible name ) mean by two states, OK? What does he mean? A state that doesn't recognize the Jewish state? A state that basically is open for attack against Israel? You know, what are we talking about? Are we talking about Costa Rica? Are we talking about another Iran? So obviously, it means different things.
I told you what are the conditions that I believe are necessary for an agreement. It's the recognition of the Jewish state and Israel's -- Israel's security control of the entire area. Otherwise, we're just fantasizing. Otherwise, we'll get another failed state, another terrorist Islamist dictatorship that will not work for peace, but work to destroy us, but also destroy any hope for a peaceful future for our people.
So I've been very clear about those conditions and they haven't changed. I haven't changed. If you read what I said eight years ago, it's exactly that and I repeated that again and again and again. If you want to deal with labels, deal with labels, I'll deal with substance.
And finally one -- if I can respond to something that I know from personal experience, I've known President Trump for many years, and to elude to him or to his people, his team, some of whom I've known for many years too -- can I reveale, Jared, how long we've known you? Well, he was never small, he was always big.
[FONT="][/FONT]
[/FONT]I believe that the issue of the settlements is not the core of the conflict, nor does it really drive the conflict. I think it's an issue that has to be resolved in the context of peace negotiations. And I think we'd also -- we also are gonna speak about it, President Trump and I, so we can arrive at an understanding so we don't keep on bumping into each other all the time on this issue and we're going to discuss this.
On the question you said -- you just came back with your question to the problem that I said. It's the label. What does (inaudible name ) mean by two states, OK? What does he mean? A state that doesn't recognize the Jewish state? A state that basically is open for attack against Israel? You know, what are we talking about? Are we talking about Costa Rica? Are we talking about another Iran? So obviously, it means different things.
I told you what are the conditions that I believe are necessary for an agreement. It's the recognition of the Jewish state and Israel's -- Israel's security control of the entire area. Otherwise, we're just fantasizing. Otherwise, we'll get another failed state, another terrorist Islamist dictatorship that will not work for peace, but work to destroy us, but also destroy any hope for a peaceful future for our people.
So I've been very clear about those conditions and they haven't changed. I haven't changed. If you read what I said eight years ago, it's exactly that and I repeated that again and again and again. If you want to deal with labels, deal with labels, I'll deal with substance.
And finally one -- if I can respond to something that I know from personal experience, I've known President Trump for many years, and to elude to him or to his people, his team, some of whom I've known for many years too -- can I reveale, Jared, how long we've known you? Well, he was never small, he was always big.
[FONT="]([/FONT]
He was always tall. But I've known the president and I've known his family and his team for a long time. There is no greater supporter of the Jewish people and the Jewish state than President Donald Trump. I think we should put that to rest.
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Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner made an appearance at the news conference for President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The couple are the President's only Jewish family, and Kushner has a relationship with the Israeli Prime Minister
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Smiles all around: Melania smiles as Ivanka goes up to greet Sara Netanyahu ahead of the news conference
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Warm welcome: Melania gives Prime Minister Netanyahu a kiss on the cheek Wednesday afternoon (above)
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During the conference, Melania and Ivanka sat next to one another, and afterwards, the First Lady took the Prime Minister's wife Sara Netanyahu to visit Washington's newest Smithsonian, the African American history museum
Netanyahu committed to trying, with Trump noting that his counterpart didn't seem to optimistic. 'Good negotiator,' he said. Netanyahu told him, 'That’s the art of the deal'
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At a White House press conference, Trump said he believes he and Benjamin Netanyahu can make a Middle East peace deal, emphasizing the the length of their relationship compared to predecessors who failed at the diplomatic process
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Netanyahu meets with Trump in the Oval Office after their joint news conference
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The leaders' wives joined them for the occasion. Netanyahu's wife Sara is on the left and First Lady Melania Trump is on the right - it's her first time at the White House since the inauguration
This is the same Jonathon Tobin who was once the editor of The Jewish Exponent, a liberal newspaper for Jewish people that served Philly. Jonathon moved on to Commentary Magazine several years ago. And now writes for National Review.
Trump Changes the U.S. Message to the Palestinians - Jonathan S. Tobin (National Review)
Trump Changes the U.S. Message to the Palestinians - Jonathan S. Tobin (National Review)
- In refusing to specifically endorse a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, President Trump was endorsing the diplomatic principle that the U.S. cannot impose peace on terms that aren't accepted by the parties, and we shouldn't behave in a manner that encourages Palestinians' ongoing refusal to make peace.
- The Fatah Party that runs the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank pays lip service at times to a two-state solution, but its ideology centers on denial and hope: Deny the right of the Jews to any part of the country, and hope for a state Arabs will dominate.
- Both Hamas and Fatah glorify violence against Jews and honor terrorists. That's why few Israelis believe a two-state solution is possible. Though it's clear a majority of Israelis want a two-state solution, they understand that the Palestinians have yet to come to terms with Israel's legitimacy, and they think more territorial withdrawals would endanger their security without bringing peace. The idea of possibly replicating a Hamas state in the West Bank strikes most Israelis as not only ill-advised but utterly insane.
- For eight years, President Obama insisted that the Israelis give up the West Bank and part of Jerusalem in order to allow a Palestinian state. He didn't take into account that Palestinian politics and the Hamas-Fatah rivalry made it impossible for them to accept the legitimacy of a Jewish state, no matter where its borders might be located. Obama's approach had the effect of rewarding Palestinian intransigence, which doomed his efforts.
- Trump sent the opposite message to the Palestinians. His refusal to sanctify the two-state mantra is a warning that if Palestinians want a state, they will not get it by jettisoning negotiations and asking the UN to impose terms on Israel. Trump's willingness to put pressure on the Palestinians - rather than pointlessly hammering the Israelis as Obama did - actually increases his chances of success, minimal though they may be.
Europe still can't rid itself of its nazi strain and fights a political war to destroy the Jewish State:
- Foreign Government Funding to Political NGOs Operating in Another Democracy Is a Violation of Sovereignty and Self-Determination - Gerald M. Steinberg
For many years, the governments of Belgium, the United Kingdom, and most other Western European governments have provided millions every year to NGOs involved in BDS, war crimes allegations against Israel, and lawsuits against the government in the Israeli courts. This European funding of groups on one side of the political spectrum has a direct impact on Israel's society and political system.
European funding for radical NGOs targeting Israel has no parallel in the democratic world. All foreign government funding to political NGOs operating in another democracy is a violation of sovereignty and self-determination. The writer is president of NGO Monitor and professor of political studies at Bar-Ilan University. (Ynet News)
For more on this story Google "Arafat" + "Plan of Phases"
For the Palestinians, the Two-State Solution Was Always a Fraud - Joel Fishman
During the war in Vietnam, the North Vietnamese intention was to conquer South Vietnam, but they spoke of the "Two-State Solution" to disguise their aims and manipulate world public opinion. They adopted a strategy of phases which would enable them to reach their goal by gradual steps.
In the early 1970s, Salah Khalaf led a PLO delegation to Hanoi to learn from the North Vietnamese. There, they met the legendary General Vo Nguyen Giap and political advisors who coached them on presenting their case and changing their image of being terrorists.
Khalaf recounted that the North Vietnamese advised the Palestinians to devote attention to the intermediate stages of their war. "The Politbureau members gave a long expose of the various stages in the Vietnamese People's struggle, explaining why they had had to resign themselves to various concessions, sometimes important ones such as the division of the country into two separate, independent states."
It is still necessary to listen carefully to what the enemy is saying and what he means. We live in a high-technology culture of sound bites, but in order to understand what is wrong here, we must remember the history of this slogan, which was designed from the start to be a swindle. It began as a tool of political warfare, and its purpose never changed. (Mosaic-Mida)
For the Palestinians, the Two-State Solution Was Always a Fraud - Joel Fishman
During the war in Vietnam, the North Vietnamese intention was to conquer South Vietnam, but they spoke of the "Two-State Solution" to disguise their aims and manipulate world public opinion. They adopted a strategy of phases which would enable them to reach their goal by gradual steps.
In the early 1970s, Salah Khalaf led a PLO delegation to Hanoi to learn from the North Vietnamese. There, they met the legendary General Vo Nguyen Giap and political advisors who coached them on presenting their case and changing their image of being terrorists.
Khalaf recounted that the North Vietnamese advised the Palestinians to devote attention to the intermediate stages of their war. "The Politbureau members gave a long expose of the various stages in the Vietnamese People's struggle, explaining why they had had to resign themselves to various concessions, sometimes important ones such as the division of the country into two separate, independent states."
It is still necessary to listen carefully to what the enemy is saying and what he means. We live in a high-technology culture of sound bites, but in order to understand what is wrong here, we must remember the history of this slogan, which was designed from the start to be a swindle. It began as a tool of political warfare, and its purpose never changed. (Mosaic-Mida)
A Step toward Mideast Peace: Tell the Truth - Max Singer (Wall Street Journal)
- If President Trump wants to advance the possibility of peace, he should begin by challenging the five big untruths that sustain the anti-Israel consensus:
- Israel occupies "Palestinian territory." This is nonsensical: There never has been a Palestinian government that could hold any territory, meaning Israel could not have taken "Palestinian land." The West Bank is "disputed" land. Israel came to the territory it holds not only during a defensive war but also through historical and legal claims, including the 1922 League of Nations mandate to establish a Jewish homeland.
- Millions of Palestinian "refugees" have a "right of return" to Israel. Practically none of the people so defined are refugees as normally defined; rather they are the descendants of refugees. The Arab world has kept them in misery for three generations to preserve their plight as a weapon against Israel. Privately, American diplomats understand that the normal description of Palestinian "refugees" is a fraud and that these descendants have no legal "right of return."
- Israelis and Palestinians have comparable claims to Jerusalem. Although Jerusalem's Al Aqsa mosque is significant in Islam, the city itself has essentially no religious importance. It is not mentioned in the Quran or in Muslim prayers. It was never the capital of any Islamic empire.
- There was no ancient Jewish presence in Israel. Palestinian leaders insist that this is true. It feeds their claim that the Jews came to Israel as foreign colonialists. This falsehood can be sustained only because it is politely tolerated by the U.S. and Europe.
- The Palestinians are ready to accept a "two-state solution" to end the conflict. The U.S. has a tendency to assume that Palestinian leaders are ready to accept Israel if suitable concessions are offered. But what is the evidence for this? When did the Palestinians give up their long-term commitment to destroy Israel? Undoubtedly, many Palestinians are willing and even eager for peace. Yet it is still taboo in Palestinian debate to publicly suggest accepting Israel's legitimacy.
The writer, a founder of the Hudson Institute, is a senior fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University in Israel.
Israel Shifts Anti-Terror Strategy in Age of ISIS - Giordano Stabile (Worldcrunch-La Stampa-Italy)
Through his binoculars, Israeli Army Major Elitsur Trabelsi looks down from Mount Gerizim at the West Bank city of Nablus and points out, "There aren't any checkpoints anymore."
"When I see Berlin, Paris, and other European cities full of concrete barriers I'm taken aback, because it means the terrorists are winning," he says.
"Experience has taught us in Israel that the fewer barriers you build and the more freedom of movement you give the local population, the more you empower those who want to live in peace and isolate the extremists.... The vast majority of Palestinians want to work and care for their families."
"We've neutralized many ISIS terror cells," says another army official. "Aspiring ISIS fighters seek external contact with the group's leadership, and this helps us identify them. But this phenomenon shows how forcefully ISIS is trying to supplant Hamas and other extremist groups in the Palestinian territories."
Through his binoculars, Israeli Army Major Elitsur Trabelsi looks down from Mount Gerizim at the West Bank city of Nablus and points out, "There aren't any checkpoints anymore."
"When I see Berlin, Paris, and other European cities full of concrete barriers I'm taken aback, because it means the terrorists are winning," he says.
"Experience has taught us in Israel that the fewer barriers you build and the more freedom of movement you give the local population, the more you empower those who want to live in peace and isolate the extremists.... The vast majority of Palestinians want to work and care for their families."
"We've neutralized many ISIS terror cells," says another army official. "Aspiring ISIS fighters seek external contact with the group's leadership, and this helps us identify them. But this phenomenon shows how forcefully ISIS is trying to supplant Hamas and other extremist groups in the Palestinian territories."
